Process for pressure molding



Patented Aug. 30, 1938 1 g A UNITED" sTArss PATENT OFFICE PROCESS FOR PRESSURE MOLDING Arthur M. Howald, Toledo, Ohio, assignor,-by

mesne assignments, to Plaskon Company, Incorporated, a corporation of Delaware No Drawing. Application March 20, 1935, Serial No. 12,015

5 Claims. (01. 18-55) This invention relates to processes for pressure the solvent. When the preform is placed in the molding and will be described as applied to presmold and the material softens and flows under sure molding of heat-hardened compounds such heat and pressure, the lubricant, being insoluble as formaldehyde urea condensation products and in the softened material, is forced out to the mold 5 phenol formaldehyde condensation products, but surface.

it is also applicable to molding of permanently In carrying out my invention, molding comthermoplastic materials and to molding of matepound is prepared in any preferred way and rials which are shaped by cold pressing. pressed into preforms. The preforms are then In order to facilitate removal of molded articles sprayed lightly with a solution of zinc stearate from their molds it is customary to employ lubridissolved in methanol. The depth to which the 10 cants, such lubricants being materials of greasy solution permeates the preforms will depend upon consistency which do not decompose at molding the amount of solution applied to them. Where temperatures. Metallic stearate, especially zinc the preform resembles the shape of the molded stearate, is extensively used, for the reason that article quite closely, as a button preform resemit is solid at ordinary temperatures and can be bles in shape a molded button, the preform need 15 ground and mixed as a powder into the powdered be only lightly sprayed, but where the preform molding material. The lubricant, to be effective, resembles the molded object 1685 37 in p should be sufficiently insoluble in the material to as for example when a bowl is molded from a be molded that when the material is subjected to disk-shaped preform, the solution of lubricant heat and pressure in the mold, some of the lubriand solvent should be applied more heavily so 20 cant will bleed out of the material to the mold that the blank may be permeated to a greater surface. Since the lubricant is mixed throughout depth and the lubricant thus distributed through the material, much of it remains the molded obthe parts of the material which flow to the surject as mechanically-held particles, which in some face during the molding Operationcases have a deleterious effect; for example, in The embodiment of my invention herein shown 25 some molded articles translucency is desirable and described is to be regarded as illustrative and the desired translucency is decreased by the only, and it is to be understood that the invention presence throughout the object of mechanicallyis susceptible to variation, modification and held particles of lubricant. change within the spirit and scope of the sub- For the purpose of reducing the bulk of charges joined claims. 30

of molding compounds so that they will not over Having described my invention, I claim:-

flow their molds and for the purpose of facilitat- 1. In a process for preparing plastic materials rapid charging o u t ple cavity molds with to be molded under heat and pressure, the steps of accurately measuredqllantities of a erial, a pressing the material in granular condition into a well as for the purpose of reducing the fiow necespreform of granular structure, applying to the sary for the material to conform to the shape of surface of the preform a solution containing a the mold, the charges are usually preformed into mold lubricant which is insoluble in the moldin compressed blanks which more or less resemble material, said solution being supplied in quantity the shape of the molded article. I have found sufficient only to permeate among the granules that by lightly spraying such preforms with a adjacent the surface of the preform, and evap- 40 lubricant in solution, the presence of the lubricant orating the solven in the molded object can be confined nearly to the 2. In a process for preparing plastic materials surface and the amount of lubricant in the to be molded, the steps of pressing the plastic mamolded object reduced to a small fraction of the terial in granular condition into a preform of I amount present in similar objects made of mategranular structure and lightly spraying the surrial with lubricant mixed throughout. The lubriface of the preform with sufiicient of a solution cant to be sprayed upon the preform, in accordin which the material of the preform is insoluble ance with my invention, should be dissolved in a to permeate among the granules adjacent the survolatile solvent which quickly evaporates. In the face of the preform, the said solution containing a 5 preform, the granules of powder, though tightly mold lubricant which is insoluble in the material pressed together, have not coalesced and when the of the preform. surface is lightly sprayed with the solution of lu- 3. In a process for preparing plastic materials bricant and solvent, the solution permeates intoto be molded under heat and pressure, the steps the minute interstices among the surface granules, of pressing the material in granular condition into where the lubricant is left after evaporation of a preform, lightly spraying the preform with suf- 55 ficient of a solution containing metallic stearate preform being sufiicient only to permeate among to permeate among the granules in the portion of the granules of the material which will flow to material which flows to adjacent the mold surface adjacent the mold surface during the molding during the molding operation, and removing the operation. 5 solvent. 5. The method of preparing urea-formaldehyde 4. In a process for preparing urea-formaldeplastic material to be molded under heat and hyde plastic material to be molded under heat and pressure which includes the steps of pressing the pressure, the steps of pressing the urea-formaldeurea-formaldehyde material in granular condihyde material in granular condition into .a pretion into a preform having granular structure, 10 form of granular structure and spraying the sur- .lightly spraying the surface of the preform with face of the preform with a solution consisting of a a solution of zinc stearate dissolved in methanol, volatile solvent and a lubricant which is insoluand removing the methanol. ble in the urea-formaldehyde material, the quantity of solution sprayed upon the surface of the ARTHUR M. HOWALD. 

